Born in Sfax, Tunisia in 1959, to a French/Latvian mother and an
English father, Dixon moved to England aged four and spent his school
years in London. Attending Chelsea Art School for a brief six-month
period, a motorbike accident curtailed any artistic ambition and left
him in hospital for three months.

Having dropped out of Art school, Dixon
spent two years as a musician,
playing bass guitar in a disco band until another motorcycle accident
left him unable to play for a period.

He spent two more years in the burgeoning
London night club and
warehouse party scene. This nocturnal lifestyle left plenty of time in
the day to start experimenting with welded structures. Necessary bike
maintenance had required welding skills, which a friend supplied in one
quick lesson.

The new found welding skills were soon put to work as Dixon explored
the decorative and structural potential of recycled materials and
industrial scrap. It was a very hands-on period, working from his own
workshop. Each piece evolved in a built form with no need for design
sketches. Some of Dixon's favoured materials at this time included
railings, concrete reinforcement bars, car inner tubing and saucepans.

"I was immediately hooked on
welding...mesmerised by the tiny pool of
molten metal, viewed from the safety of darkened goggles. Allowing an
instant fusion of one piece of steel to another. It had none of the
seriousness of craft and none of the pomposity of design: it was
industry.

London at the time was still full of scrap
metal yards and the skips
were piled full of promising bits & pieces due to the eighties
boom....all of which presented themselves to me as potential chair
backs or table legs. Unhindered by commercial concerns (I had my night
job,) or formal training I made things just for the pleasure of making
them. It was only when people started to buy that I realised I had hit
on a form of alchemy...I could turn a pile of scrap metal into gold."

It wasn't long before Dixon's sculptural
objects began to get
recognition and commissions and exhibitions followed. This rapid
increase in demand required a more plentiful and reliable source of
materials. He turned his attention to ready-made forms and technology
to feed his increased interest in industrial techniques and batch
production. He designed in sheet metal creating a much more minimalist
product that was determined by the industrial technique used for
production.

As Dixon's international reputation grew, he was
approached by Italian furniture design company, Cappellini. He began to
be taken seriously on the international stage as Cappellini worked to
put some of his designs into major production. The "S" chair made Tom
Dixon's name, evolving from early prototypes in his Creative Salvage
days. It was initially woven with recycled rubber inner tubes, and then
covered in rush, a material traditionally used for drop in seats.
Cappellini were attracted by its sculptural form and amazing legless
structure of bent steel frame. Launched by Cappellini with a vibrant
felt upholstered covering in 1989, the "S" chair quickly reached iconic
like status and now has a permanent place in the Museum of Modern Art,
New York. Dixon has since collaborated with Cappellini on many other
projects, including the Bird Rocking chair, the Pylon table and chair
and the tub chair to name a few.

TOM DIXON the company was started by Tom Dixon and
David Begg in 2002. Since its inception, the company has developed its
own collection of contemporary lighting and furniture including the
acclaimed Mirror Ball Collection of lights and more recently Copper
Shade. TOM DIXON designs have entered the international major league
through renowned shows at major venues like the Milan Furniture Fair
and the London Design Museum, where Tom Dixon is currently nominated
for Designer of the Year. Tom Dixon the designer is particularly well
known for his earlier designs such as the S-chair, designed for
Cappellini, and the rotationally moulded Jack Lamp which gained the
Millennium Mark for Great British Design in 1998. He was awarded the
OBE for services to British Design in 2000.

In 2004 a partnership was established
between the TOM DIXON founders
and the venture capital company Proventus, forming Design Research,
which today owns and manages both TOM DIXON and Artek, the Finnish
modernist furniture manufacturer which was established by Alvar Aalto
in 1935. Additionally, Tom Dixon has also been the creative director
for major furniture retailer Habitat since 1997.

Eames,
Charles (1907-1978) and Ray (1912-1988)@ - Find sites for Charles and
Ray Eames, the American architects and filmmakers. Sites feature their 9-minute
film, architectural theory of Power of 10, completed projects, and their iconic
works such as Meyer House, Case Study #8, and Eames House.

Gehry,
Frank (b. 1929)@ - Find sites for Frank Gehry, the architect who
designed curvaceous buildings covered with reflective metal. Sites offer
biography, museum collections, image archives, and bibliography for the American
sculptor who built Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain.

Wright,
Frank Lloyd (1867-1959)@ - Find sites for Frank Lloyd Wright, the
American master of architecture who practiced organic architecture. Sites offer
bio, quotes, structure images, building guide, digital prints, overlays, and the
heritage of one of the most influential architects and his 70-year
career.